Month: November 2019

INTERVIEW: Andrew Pollard, writer/director/star of Greenwich Theatre’s Sleeping Beauty

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WHERE? Greenwich Theatre

WHEN? opens 22/11, press night 29/11, runs to 12/1/20

Greenwich Theatre’s annual pantomime is always one of the highlights of our festive season and so we quizzed writer/director/star Andrew Pollard (pictured above) to find out more about this year’s show which is in previews from Friday (22/11/19)

  • Read on for reasons including how comedy heroes from Eric Morecambe to Beryl Reid are channelled

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ALBUM OF THE MONTH: Don’t Know What’s Cool Anymore by Alphabeat (November 2019)

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

OUT: now

TRACKLIST: Shadows; I Don’t Know What’s Cool Anymore; Back Of My Bike; Goldmine; Sing A Song; Sometimes; Now You Know; The Answer; I’d Rather Die

‘Got a UK deal before we finished school, Moved to East London and tried to be cool,
Top ten felt like picking a cherry, Wearing free sneaks in the pub with Katy Perry.’

  • Read on for reasons including why you should see Alphabeat live in the UK in April

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SONG OF THE MONTH: Break Up (Bye Bye) by Frock Destroyers (November 2019)

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WORTH A LOOK?: *****

OUT: now

Ladies – start your engines. We’re big fans of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and so, when monstagigz favourite MNEK appeared to produce rival girl groups, we thought the results would be good but we weren’t quite prepared for two fabulous versions of a great original song.

  • Read on for reasons including why favourite Cheryl Hole’s Filth Harmony wasn’t our pick

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THEATRE REVIEW: & Juliet at the Shaftesbury Theatre starring Miriam-Teak Lee, Cassidy Janson, Oliver Tompsett & David Bedella

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHERE? Shaftesbury Theatre

WHEN? 9/11, opens 20/11, runs to 30/5/20

Swede Max Martin is the third most successful songwriter in US chart history with credits on 22 number singles behind only Beatles Paul McCartney and John Lennon.

  • Read on for reasons including how two unexpected love stories challenge stereotypes here

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GIG REVIEW: Ella Henderson at Hoxton Hall

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WORTH A LOOK?: *****

WHERE? Hoxton Hall

WHEN? 9/11/19

SETLIST: Glow; Glorious; We Got Love; Yours: Bones; Young; Glitterball; This Is Real; Friends; Brave; Ghost

Ella Henderson is at the piano introducing new song Bones reflecting on seeing a large backside in a magazine and realising it was her own.

  • Read on for reasons including how Jax Jones appeared here as a surprise guest

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GIG REVIEW: Marina at Eventim Apollo

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WORTH A LOOK?: ***1/2

WHERE? Eventim Apollo

WHEN? 4/11, tour runs to 18/11/19

SETLIST: Handmade Heaven; Hollywood; Primadonna; Enjoy Your Life; I Am Not A Robot; To Be Human; Superstar; From; Orange Trees; Teen Idle; Believe In Love; Bubblegum Bitch; Emotional Machine; I’m Not Hungry Anymore; No More Suckers; Karma; Oh No; Baby: End Of the Earth; How To Be A Heartbreaker

We last saw Marina at a Q&A in London in April where she talked about her artistic freedom and so we’re not entirely surprised when at the close of tonight’s gig she drops a bombshell.

  • Read on for reasons including why this was Marina’s ‘perfect last show for me for a while’

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GIG REVIEW: Shakespears Sister at the Palladium

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****1/2

WHERE? London Palladium

WHEN? 5/11, tour runs to 20/11/19

SETLIST: Goodbye Cruel World; Heroine; Dangerous Game; Dirty Mind; My 16th Apology; Heaven Is In Your Arms; The Trouble With Andre; Emotional Thing; C U Next Tuesday; Time To Say Goodbye; All The Queen’s Horses; When She Finds You; Black Sky; Stay; Are We In Love Yet?: I Don’t Care; You’re History; Catwoman; Hello (Turn Your Radio On)

Shakespears Sister are a band of extraordinary peculiarities not least, as lead singer Siobhan Fahey points out, that their final song tonight is titled Hello (while the opener was Goodbye Cruel World).

  • Read on for reasons including a surprise appearance by Richard Hawley

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THEATRE REVIEW: Sydney And The Old Girl starring Miriam Margolyes at the Park Theatre

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WORTH A LOOK?: ***

WHERE? Park Theatre RUNTIME: 140 minutes (with a 20-minute interval)

WHEN? 2/11, press night 5/11, runs to 30/11/19

Star Miriam Margolyes may be playing a woman who is housebound and sits predominantly in a wheelchair  here but she has a hugely expressive face which leaves us in no doubt about what she is thinking.

  • Read on for reasons including how to see this world premiere

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GIG REVIEW: Little Mix at The 02

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WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHERE? The O2

WHEN? 1/11, tour runs to 22/11/19

SETLIST: Salute; Power; Woman Like Me; Wasabi; Bounce Back; Only You; Black Magic; Strip; Told You So; Secret Love Song Pt II; The Cure; Joan Of Arc; Wings; Shout Out To My Ex; Woman’s World; Reggaeton; No More Sad Songs; Think About Us; Heartbeat; More Than Words; Touch

There’s a beautiful moment during this arena gig with an audience heavy on parents and young children where Little Mix celebrate their LGBT fans and have some words of hope and encouragement for those with mental health worries.

* Read on for reasons including how you can see Little Mix back at The 02 in November

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GIG REVIEW: Charli XCX at the O2 Academy Brixton

Posted on by mrmonstagigz

WORTH A LOOK?: ****

WHERE? O2 Brixton Academy

WHEN? 31/10, tour runs to 28/11/19

SETLIST: Next Level Charli; Click; I Don’t Wanna Know; Vroom Vroom; Gone; Cross You Out; Warm; February 2017; Thoughts; White Mercedes; Official; Shake It; I Got It; Blame It On Your Love; Silver Cross; 2099; Unlock It; I Love It; Boys; 1999

It’s the encore of this sell-out show and its star (pictured above) is in tears reflecting on the success of her biggest London gig to date and making the transition from writing radio hits to songs she fronts that better represent her.

  • Read on for reasons including how Christine and the Queens appeared in person here to duet

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